Hamburg steak patty forming machine



April 1953 F. s. ELSAESSER 2,634,458

HAMBURG STEAK PATTY FORMING MACHINE I Filed 001;. 11, 1946 4Sheets-Sheet l I: mmvrox.

3 U FRANn S. ELSAESSER BY Auoryg A ril 14, 1953 F. s. ELSAESSER HAMBURGSTEAK PATTY FORMING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 11, 1946 p l 14,1953 F. s. ELSAESSER 2,634,458

HAMBURG STEAK PATTY FORMING MACHINE Filed Oct. 11, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 4INVENTOR.

FMM 6. [an 5685/? Patented Apr. 14, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEHAMBURG STEAK PATTY FORMING MACHINE Frank S. Elsaesser, Cincinnati, OhioApplication October 11, 1946, Serial No. 702,596

15 Claims. (01. 17-32) The machine of this invention is fully automaticin the forming of the Hamburg steak patty in that a quantity of meat isautomatically cut from the meat grinder to fall on paper which wasautomatically positioned to receive the ground meat and which paper isautomatically folded onto the meat.

It is therefore the main object of this invention to provide a machineto produce meat patties such as are used in Hamburg steaks, whichrequires the operator to merely supply the meat to be ground to the meatgrinder.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a machine that Willaccomplish the above object and which is of simple construction and'canbe operated by an inexperienced operator.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a meat pattyforming machine in which the patties are expeditiously produced and inwhich sanitation is maintained in a high degree.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a machine forproducing meat patties automatically and which machine. may be adjustedto produce difierent sizes or weights of patties.

A further object of this invention is the provision of a meat pattyforming machine in which its operation may be co-ordinated with theoutput of a meat grinder whereby meat patties are automaticallyproduced. a

'A'stiil further object of this invention is the provision of a machinefor forming meat patties wherein a quantity of ground meat isautomatically severed from the output of a meat grinder, automaticallyarranging a paper to receive the meat from the grinder and which paperis automatically folded onto the meat, or the meat automaticallyenfolded in the paper, and automatically compress the quantity of meatinto a patty of a desired thickness.

to the following specificationconsidered in con- Junction with-theaccompanying drawings form- Other objects and advantages of the presentinvention should be readily apparent by reference ing a part thereof andit is to be understood that any modification may be made in the exactstructural details there shown and described, within the scope of theappended claims, without departing from or exceeding the spirit of theinvention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of one form of a machine forming thesubject matter of this invention, with certain parts broken away tocon-- SBI'VB space.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. 3is a view partly in elevation andpartly in section taken on line 3-3 onFig. 2, with v certain parts broken away and certain parts omitted forclearness of illustration.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary plan view of a portion of the power transmittingmechanism as seen from line 4 l on Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view through the Fig. 6 looking to theleft of said line 1-4.

Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 7 taken through a plane behind that ofFig. '7 on line 8-8 on I Fig. *6.

.Fig. 9 is .an enlarged fragmentary, sectional view taken on line 9-9 onFig. 2 and illustrating .a detail of the invention.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary enlarged elevational view of certain parts ofthe machine as seen from line iii-16 on Fig. 2.

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional .view taken on line ll-I lon Fig. 2.

Fig. 12 is an elevational view of a cam utilized with the machine of thepresent invention and forming a detail of the invention.

Fig. 13 is a side or plan view of the cam 0 .Fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is a fragmentary, enlarged longitudinal sectional view of aportion of the machine semidiagrammatically illustrating certain actionthereof during the process of forming a meat patty.

Fig. 15 is a fragmentary top plan view of a portion of the machineillustrated in Fig. l but disclosing a modification in its constructionand operation.

Fig. 16 is a fragmentary front elevation of the modified machineillustrated in Fig. 15.

Throughout the several views of the drawings, similar referencecharacters are employed to denote the same or similar parts.

The machine of this invention will find its principal use inrestaurants, dining rooms and the like establishments which feature orserve Hamburg steak or Hamburgers as they are popularly called. It hasbeen found that Hamburg steak patties can be formed on this machine at arate requiring but a single'attendant that formerly needed three andfour persons and that the patties are of uniform physical properties,that is, of the same area, thickness and density whereas formerly eachmaker developed his own technique which resulted in variations of theseproperties wherefore, the resulting cooked Hamburg steaks were ofdifferent degrees of being done.

The machine comprises a table member 20 supported in any suitable ordesirable manner as by legs 21. Intermediate its ends the table 2' is,provided with an opening 22 of a size to receive a drum or pulley 23.The pulley 23 1S sec red to a shaft 24 rotatably mounted in bearings 25"and 25, respectively, located one on each side of the opening 22.Partially encircling the pulley 23 is a belt 21 made of flexiblematerial and adaptable to being washed or otherwise cleaned from time totime. The belt 2! is a conveyor belt for conveying the meat to andthrough a mashing unit or patty former.

The conveyor belt 21 partially encircles a second drum or pulley 28,located some distance from the pulley 23, for example as shown in thedrawings, at one end of the table 25 in a recess 29 provided in saidtable therefor. The pulley 28 is secured to a shaft 30 rotatably mountedin bearings 3! and 32 secured to the undersurface of the table,respectively, one on each side of the recess 29. The ends of the belt 21are joined to one another to make it an endless conveyor and thisjoining may be accomplished in any suitable or desirable manner. Asillustrated in the drawings, the joining is effected by providing eachend of the belt with projecting metal loops 33 and 34,

which interleaf to form a passageway through which. a pin 35 passes. Bythis construction, the ends of the belt may be readily separated fromone another by removin the pin 35 and the belt removed from the machinefor washing or otherwise cleaning.

The bearings 3| and 32 are utilized to supply the belt 21 with thenecessary tension and to take up any slack that may develop therein. Toaccomplish this the said hearings or bearing brackets 3i and'32' areeach provided with elongated apertures 35' and 31 through which mountingbolts 38 pass and whereby the brackets, with their shaft 39, may beadjusted toward and from the shaft-24.

The drum or pulley 23 is the driving pulley for the conveyor belt 21 andhas its shaft 24 projecting beyond one side of the table 29 to havesecured thereto a pulley 39 about which passes transmission belt 49. Thetransmission belt 45 also passes around pulley 4| secured to one end ofintermediate shaft 42. The intermediate shaft 42 is rotatably mounted ina bracket 43 shown as secured to a shelf or the like 44 spaced below thetable 20 and held in position by the legs 2i. Secured to the other endof the intermediate shaft 42 is a pulley 45 having extending therearounda transmission belt 46. This transmission belt 45. also extends around apulley 41 of a speed changing unit indicated in the drawings, ingeneral, by the reference numeral 48. A further transmission belt 9extends about a second pulley 58 of the speed changing unit 48 as wellas about the driving pulley 55 on the free end of the motor shaft 5! ofelectric motor 52.

It should be noted that the motor pulley 50, intermediate shaft pulleys4i and 45, and final driven or conveyor belt pulley 39 are of differentdiameters which is for the purpose of reducing the speed of rotation ofdrum pulley 23 from that of the motor 52 and that any other speedreducing transmission device may be arranged between the driving motorand said conveyor belt driving pulley or drum 23 It should further benoted that, some speed changing mechanism, such as that indicated aboveby the reference numeral 48, must be included in the transmission for apurpose which will later be made clear.

The speed reducing mechanism 48, per se, forms no part of the presentinvention except in combination and is of a type such asdisclosed inUnited States Patents Nos. 2,151,189 and 2,186,477.

Generally this speed reducing mechanism comprises a bracket 53 bolted orotherwise securedto the shelf 44 having upstanding from its oppositeends posts 54 and 55. Mounted in the post" 55 for oscillatory movementis a carrier 56 10-- tatably supporting at its upper end a shaft. It

is on the shaft 51 that the pulleys 41 and '58 are.

mounted. Said pulleys are respectively formed on opposite sides of asliding pulley member 55' as fully explained in the patents abovereferred to. Briefly it is the relative position of the pulley member59, axially of the shaft 51 that determines the efi'ective diameter ofthe pu1leys'4 1'a'nd 58. This effective seizing of these pulleys 41'a'nd 58 is brought about by the swinging of the carrier 56. In order toswing or oscillate carrier" 56; the post 54 has journaled therein,against axialmovement, a screw 60 carrying at its outer end a hand wheel5! for effecting its rotation. The screw 60 is threaded through a nut 62oscillatably carried by the carrier 56.

It is believed the operation of this speed changer is readily understoodas an oscillation or movement of the carrier 56 away from the motor 52will cause a tightening of transmission" belt 49 and a correspondingloosening of trans mission belt 46 whereby the intermediate pulleymember 59 will shift away from the observer as seen in Fig. 1 causing areduction in the diameter of the pulley 58' and an increase in thepulley 41, while an oscillation or movement of. the carrier 55 in theopposite direction will reversely shift the intermediate pulley member59' and reversely efi'ect the diameters of pulleys 58 and 41.

It will be noted'that the conveyor belt driving,

pulley or drum 23 and the driven pulley or drum 28 are mounted to betangent to the table top wherefore, the upper layer or reach of theconveyor belt moves along the. said table top, Near the driven drum orpulley 28 the conveyor belt 21 passes beneath the mashing or flattening.

mechanism indicated in general by the reference. numeral 63. Thismashing or flattening. mechaveyor belt 21, is a shaft 61' having securedto it" 5 a drum or pulley 68. The masher'slde members 64 and 65 neartheir rear ends also have rotatably mounted therein a shaft 69, whichhas secured to it a drum or pulley I0. It will be noted, particularlyfrom Fig. 6, that the shaft 69 is located much nearer the conveyor beltthan shaft 61. Extending around the drums or pulleys 68 and I is a Thedrum or pulley 68 is the driving pulley while the drum or pulley I0 isthe driven or idler pulley for which reason the shaft of drum 68 extendsbeyond the masher side to have secured to it a pulley I partiallyencircled by a transmission belt IB. The transmission belt I6 alsopartially encircles a second pulley TI on the shaft 24 of the conveyorbelt driving drum 23. transmission belt pulleys I5 and TI are of suchdiameter that the belts 21 and II have substantially the same surfacerate of travel. As will be seen in Fig. 6, the upper layer or reach ofconveyor belt 2'! is directly below and opposed to the bottom layer orreach of masher belt II. These belt layers or reaches are to travel inthe same direction, that is, from left to right, as seen in the drawingswherefore, the transmission belt I6 is twisted, as seen in Figs. 1 and2, causing the shaft 29 to rotate clockwise and the shaft 68 to rotatecounter-clockwise.

As noted above and as can be seen from Fig. 6, the shaft 61 is a greaterdistance from belt 21 than the shaft 69 thereby providing a contractingthroat which constitutes the masher or flat-- tening chamber with thefinal thickness or thinness of the Hamburg steak determined by the spacebetween belts 21 and H at the point where the belt II passes around thelowest point of the drum or pulley It and this point is indicated in thedrawings by the reference character 78.

The operation of the masher B3 is as follows:

The conveyor belt 21 carries a quantity of ground meat into the largeend of the mashing or flattening chamber and the ground meat is engagedon its upper side after a paper has been placed thereon, as will laterbe made clear, by the belt II, which being driven assists in moving thesaid meat through the chamber. Since the said belts 21 and II graduallyconverge toward one another, the meat is likewise reduced in thicknessuntil the narrowest point I8 of the chamber is reached whereupon thedriven or idler drum I0 completes the flattening of the ground meat intoa patty ready for cooking. The original quantity of ground meat thatentered the flattening chamber was the right amount to produce thedesired Hamburg steak.

The masher mechanism 63 is secured in place by a pair of brackets 19 and80, respectively, connecting the front ends of side members 64 and 65 tothe table top 20 and by brackets 8! and 82 which, respectively, securethe rear ends of said side members to the table top. The front bracketsare permanently secured to the table and have a pivotal connection at 83and 84 with their respective side members, while the brackets BI and 82are likewise permanently secured to the table and they have anadjustable connection at 85 and The i 86 with their respective sidemembers. vThis adjustable connection consists of a slot in each bracket8| and 82 through each of which passes a clamp bolt 81, 81. From this itwill be seen that the exit throat 18 of the masher chamber may be variedin thickness by adjusting the masher mechanism about the pivots 83,,and84 to raise or lower the drum or pulley. I0 relative to the conveyorbelt 21.

In order to efiect the mashing or flattening of I the meat as it passesthrough the masher chamber, the lower portion or reach of the belt II isbacked up by a pressure board or buckboard 8B. The pressure board 88 maybe mounted in positionthrough wings 89 and 90 respectively,

projecting from the sides thereof and having passing therethrough, intothe masher side members 04 and 65, bolts 9|. By providing the pressureboard wings 89 and 90 with elongated apertures 92 for the bolts 9I thepressure board 88 may be adjusted toward and from the conveyor belt 21.

The quantity of meat to be formed into a patty is cut from the streambeing delivered from a meat grinder which is positioned to have itsoutlet in operative relation to the paper 66. There is nothing new ornovel in the meat grinder, per. se, except as to its support in relationto the patty forming machine.

The meat grinder as disclosed in the drawings comprises a motor 93secured to-or mounted on a base 94 for driving a worm feed 95. The worm95 is driven from the motor 93 through a speedy reducing mechanism in ahousing 93. The meat to be ground is disposed on a tray 91 and fedthrough a funnel or sleeve 98 to the worm 95.'

The worm 95 forces the meat past a cutter 99 at the end of the worm andthrough the shredding plate I00. The shredded or ground and severed meatparticles pass through a nozzle IM to be extruded from the grinder.

Operating in front of the nozzle IOI is a knife I02 which periodicallysevers the extruded meat from that still within the grinder. The knifeI02 is timed to operate periodically, that is, after a predetermined anddesired amount of ground meat has been extruded from the nozzle IOI. Theknife I02 may be actuated in any suitable or desirable manner such as byreciprocating past the nozzle opening or by rotating relative thereto;in each case as the knife passes the nozzle opening a quantity of meatis deposited onto the. paper and conveyor belt for subjection to themasher mechanism.

The means for reciprocating the knif I02 and illustrated in Figs. 1, 2,12 and 13 comprises an arm I03 having the knife I02 at one end thereofand its other end in contact witha peripheral cam I64. The arm I03 ispivoted at I05, intermediate its ends, to a post or bracket I06. Aspring I01 has its one end connected to the arm I03 at a point betweenthe pivot I05 and cam I04 for yieldingly retaining the end of the arm incontact with the cam and for which purj pose the spring I01 has itsother end connected,

conveniently, to the masher mechanism 63 as I to a bar I08 carried bythe masher mechanism side members 64 and 65.

The cam m4 is illustrated clearly in Figs. 12

and 13 and is essentially a disc with a vertical step-01f I09 thatterminates in-a shoulder H0. The shoulder IIO, illustrated most clearlyin Fig.

12, inclines from the inner side to the outer side thereof and in effectconstitutes a second cam. Extending around the periphery of. the cam isa spiral groove II! having an: entrant portion. II 2 in th'e shouldercam. M0, at a point adjacent theouter side of the. cam, and having an.exit II3 at-the cam step-'ofi' I09. and located i centthe inner face ofsaid cam.

Theoperation of the knife actuating meche afiismis as'follows:

Assurin'n'g the knife I02 to be in the. position illustrated in Figs. 1and 2 and the cam 16 2' m theposition' illustrated in Fig. 13 androtating'ir'r a counter-clockwise direction with the end of the arm 103remote from the knife 102 in the spiral groove III and, at this time,near the exit H3; of's'aid groove. Continued rotation of the cam I'Mcauses the arm, through the tension" in the spring I01,- to snap downthe stepofl I'IIB' causing the knife IfiZ-to' pass the outlet ofthe'nozzle IN and sever the meat projecting fromsaid nozzle; I

it will be appreciated that meat is constantly being extruded from thenozzle IBI- whereby the knife I02 cannot pass directly upwardly throughits path of 'descentotherwise a second and'undesirable severing oftheextruded gr-ound meat will't'ake place; Therefore, the end of the armupon-passing over the step-off I09 and engag ing the cam shoulder 'I- I9" is forced outwardly of themasher'; or toward the observer as seen in-Figs. 1 and 2, thereby swinging the knif 92 V m the-opposite directionoraway from the observen as' seen-in said- Figs. 1 and 2. The end of thearm" III-3 upon reaching the lowermost point ofthe canrshoulder I m ispickedup by th spiral groove III by enteringthe entrant portion H2ofsaid' groove and immediately raised to its uppermost position as seenin Fig. 1, however, through-a plane remote-from thenozzle IIH asdetermined by the width of cam shoulder no.

In" the embodiment disclosed the cam I04 is located between the sidemember 85 of the masher mechanism andthe masher belt drum 68'whereforethe endof the-arm- I83'is prevented by the shoulder cam IB- from beingprojected beyond the'si'des of the cam I04. It is understood thatflanges could readily be appli d to thercam sides to thereby formachannel pe ri'pherially of the cam for confining the said end of theknife arm. It'should' be here noted that the rotationof the'cam H34 anditsactuation of the arm I03 is in timed-relation to'the paper feed r ordepositing mechanism as will later be made clear. It will be appreciatedthat the arm I93 has considerable snap'and'to limit its movement andparticularly dampen vibration therein; use is' made of a stop I14 toengage the arm I 03 after ithas passed the nozzle NH and which stop IIf4projects from a post H5 upstanding from the table 26. v I

Hamburg steaks vary in weight and their size are generally determined bythe number thereof formed from a pound of ground I-larnburp, meat. Sincethe knife I02 is operated from a source of power independent of thesource of power for the grinding machin and, as noted above; the latterconstantly produces ground meat." it is necessary to actuate the knifeat shorter i'nt'ervalsif smaller or less expensive Hamburg steaks aredesired than if larger ones are required. It is for this reason thattheconveyor belt transmission includes the speed changing mechanism 48.From this it will be seen that since all of the 'cutofl mechanism,mashing mechan'ism, and as later will be made clear, the paperpositioning mechanism is operated from the source their speed and-rateof operation the'shifting of the meat'grind'er mechanism from a positionat the front of the machine to the end thereof adjacent the conveyorbelt driving drum 23'. In this case the grinder mechanism could bemounted on the table 20 but preferably is separately mounted on its ownstandor support I I'B inthe said manner as when used at the front of themachine. The grinder operation is exactly the same as above disclosedbut instead of utilizing cam I05 the masher drivingshaft has secured toit a pulley I I! about which is trained a transmissionbelt 'I I8 in turntrained about a pulley II9 on the end of a shaft" IZIi. The shaft Iii.is rotatably journaled in a suitable bearing I2I secured to andupstanding from the table 20. The inner end of the knife shaft I 29 hassecured to it a crank arm I22 having the inner end of a knife I23secured thereto.

It is believed obvious that rotation of the shaft I20 causes th knifeI23, during each revolution, to sever a quantity of meat from thestrea'mbeing constantly extruded from the nozzle WI. The rateof rotation of theknife I 23 is controlled and adjustable by the variable speed mechanism48 to control the weight of the subsequent Ham-- burg steaks all asabove described. It sh0u1d'a1So be noted that the position of the knifeI23, that is the time it is eflecting its severance of the quantity ofmeat, is timed with the paper positi'onin mechanism so that a paper ipositioned prior to the cutoff of the meat quantity, and it should behere noted that the parts are in proper timed position as illustrated inFig. 15.

The paper 66, shown in dot and dash lines in Fig. 2 is in position toreceive the ground meat- IZ-B' have their outer ends each joined to alongie tudinal member or bar I28 having a depending leg I29. The leg I29has face contact with the: vertical arm I39 of an angle bracket I3I-secured to the-table 29 through its horizontal arm I32;

The supporting frame I25 is positioned above the conveyor belt 27 adistance to permit the ground meat quantity, hereinafter called groundmeat ball, I33 as severed from" the grinder to pass freely thereunderand since-Hamburg steaks are" made to different sizes, requiringdiiferent quan titles of meat, or sizes of meat ball, the said frame I25isadiustable toward andfr om the conveyor belt 21. To accomplishthisadjustment the vertical'arm" I30 of the bracket I31 is provided withan elongatedaperture I36 through which passes the clamp bolt I35 into atapped aperture in theleg I29.

The stack I24 of individual papers 66' is disposed on a shelf I36 behindthe table 20 and which shelf, as seen in Fig. 2, has its longitudinalaxis angularly disposed to the longitudinafaxis of the table 20 for apurpose to-bemade clear.

This supporting frame The shelf I36 may be supported relative to thetable in any suitable or desirable manner preferably with the shelf atleast as high above the table and conveyor 21 as the paper support frameI25 is above said table and conveyor, for example, as shown in thedrawings, by the arm I31. In order to prevent disarrangement of thepapers 66 from the stack I24 the shelf is provided at its rear with arail I38 and at its one end with a second rail I39. i

The individual papers 66 are removed from the stack 'I24 automaticallyby one or more pickers I40 and MI carried by 'the outer end of an armI42; The arm I42 is secured to cross member -I43'.'to' havetheir axes ina definite angular re1a-' tion and which connection' may be accomplishedin any suitable or desirable manner as by bracket I44. :The'cross memberor cross bar I43 is pivoted at I 45','intermediate its ends, to apostI46 upstanding from table 26. The post I46 may be secured to'the tablein any suitable -or desirable manner. as by bracket I41. The other endof the .cross. bar I43. has a pivotal" connection at I48 "with the freeend'of a piston I49. As seen most clearly in Fig. 10, the piston I49 isrotatably "mounted at I50 eccentrically of a disc I5I in the manner ofan eccentric crank. The disc I5I is secured in any suitable ordesirable'manner to the flattening mechanism driving shaft 61 as bykeying the same thereto or by bolting it to the pul1ey'15.

By reference particularly to Figs. 2, 1'0. 11, it will be appreciatedwith the shaft 6'! rotating in counterclockwise direction the piston I49will be actuated to the left, as seen in Fig.2, and to the right as seenin Fig. 10, during the first half of a revolution of the disc I5I, foroscillating the cross arm I43 in counterclockwise direction and .therebyswing the arm I42 from the solid line position thereof to the phantomline position of .Fig. 2. This movement of the arm I 42 through thepickers I46 and MI moves the uppermost paper 66 from the stack I24 ontothe support frame I25. The arm I42 exerts a slight pressure ontheuppermost paper through the pickers and to accomplish this the'uppersurface of the post I46 is rounded or arched as at I52 and the cross barpivot I45 passes through an enlarged aperture I53 in the said cross barI43.

The operation of these parts is as follows:

The disc I5I rotating clockwise, as seen in Fig. '10, tends to elevatethe pivot or crank I56 there- "by tending to raise the piston I49. Thepiston acting on one end of the cross bar I43, tends to .rockthesaidcross bar in'a counterclockwise direc-tion,- as viewed from Fig. 11,about the pivot I45 and actually does so to the extent permitted ,by theclearance of the pivot aperture I53. This action of the cross bar I43causes the arm I42 to be depressed so that its pickers I46 and MI gripthe uppermost paper 66 of the stack. When the disc IOI reaches the endof a half revolution, the arm I42, is in its phantom line position. Thedisc I 5] in going through its second half revolution reacts oppositelyon its crank pin or pivot I56 and piston I5I thereby tending toreversely oscillate the cross bar I43 and actually effect the raising ofthe arm I42 to a point to pass above the paper stack I24. Continuedrotation of the disc I5I continues the operation of the arm I42 as abovedescribed to deposit a single paper from the stack onto the frame I25for each rotation of the disc I5I.

* 'To assist in preventing the discharge or transfer of more than onesheet of paper 66 at a time,=

10 the shelf has upstanding from-its front edge a pair of light springsI54 and I55 which hold back the stack but do not interfere with grippingaction between the grippers I40 and MI and the uppermost paper sheetwhile a transfer is taking place. To further assist in maintaining thestack in proper position a light weight is placed-on top of the stackcomprising a hold down roller I56. The hold down roller I56 is freelyrotatableand any suitable or desirable means may be employed to keepsame inposition while imposing no restraint against movement of theuppermost paper sheet by the arm I42 and its pickers. The

means shown in the'drawings for this purpose comprise a bracket I51.carried by the shelf..-.Iz3.6

and having a guide I58 at its-upper end through whicha stern.- I56freely passes. I'he stem 1 ,56 has at its lower end a forked head I60carrying an axle I'6I on which the hold down rollergltii and cover theground meat ball wherefore ithe patty is protected both above andlbelowitself. It will also be noted that the meat ballrisautomaticallydeposited on the paper and as will presently be made clear the paper isautoniaticaiiy placed thereover wherefore thehandling ofthe Hamburgsteak patty is protected against con-- tamination from any and everysource after the meat is placed in the grinder.

After a paper sheet 66 is deposited on thesupport I25 the cut-off knifeis operated to deposit a quantity of ground meat or ground meat ball I33thereon over the enlarged space. I27 in the support frame. The weight ofthe ground'meat carries thepaper with it through the said space I21 tothe conveyor: belt 2'! therebelow. As pointed out above, the paper sheet66 is large enough to cover the meat and the. action of the meat andpaper dropping onto the conveyor belt 21, causes the covering portion ofthepaper to be disposed normal to the belt and to be so positioned bythe adjacent transverse bar I26 :as illustrated in Fig. .14.. .Theconveyor belt being constantly driven carries the ground meat'an'd papertoward the flattening mechanism beneath the transverse bars I26. "As theground! meat passes beneath these bars. I26, the covering por tion ofthe paper is folded thereab'ove. If' the masher or flattening mechanismwere located adjacent the support frame I25, the ground meat with itspaper in covering position would immediately be pressed intoengagement,'but 3 to permit an inspection and observation of themovement of these parts, the'mechanism 63 is somewhat removed from thesupport frame I25 and means are provided to insure the covering portionof the paper remaining in position and preventing this portion of thepaper from assuming its natural flat position until the mashing orflattening mechanism is reached.

Accordingly, the mashing or flattening unit 63 has secured to theforward ends of its side members and extending transversely of the belt-2I-, a rod I62 to which one end of a guide or paper hold down memberI63 is attached. The other end of the guide I63 is attached to thenearest of the transverse bars I25 and the guide extendslongitudinallytof the conveyor belt?! substantially down itslongitudinal center as illustrated most clearly in Fig. 2. The action oroperation of "the guide 163 is clearly illustrated in Fig. 1e and holdsthe covering half of the paper of successive'ground meat and paper unitsin position until'they enter the masher and flattening unit throat.

From the foregoing it will now be appreciated that there has beenprovided a Hamburg steak patty "forming machine which automaticallyproduces Hamburg steak patties to a given size and" produces the same inan expeditious and sanitary manner. .It will further be noted thattherehas been provided a machine :whichotherwisefulfills the objects"in'itially'set forth.

' What is claimed is;

inn-a device .ofthe class described the combination with a meat grinderhaving an outlet, of 'a' supporting tableQa conveyor belt on said tablebeneath the grinder outlet, patty forming means onsaid table inoperativerelation to'the con-- veyor'belt', means for arranging a "paper relativeto the" conveyor belt torec'eive" a quantity of ground meatfrom thegrinder, and'a reciproeating knifereciprocable past the grinder outletto sever'a quantity of ground meat from the stream being extruded fromthe grinder. J2. In a device of the class described the combination with.a meat grinder having an outlet, of a supporting table, :a conveyorbelt'on said table beneath the'grinder outlet, patty formingmeans on:said table in operative relation to the conveyor :belt, means forholding a stack or" individual papers adjacent the conveyor belt. meansfor arranging said papers individually from said stack relative to thebelt to receive aiquan'tity for ground meat after it is severed from thestream being extruded'from the grindarreciprocating knife reciprocablepast the grinderjoutlet to sever a quantity of ground meat from thestream beingextruded from the grinder, and means for synchronizingtheoperation of the paper arranging means and the s reciprocations of'the' knife whereby the knife reciprocates only after the paper has beenpositioned.

' 3. Ina device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet, r of a supporting 'table', a .conveyor'belt onsaid table beneath the grinder outlet, patty forming means ,onsaidtable. in operative relation tosaid conveyor belt, ,means forarranging'a paper reiative to the conveyor belt to receive a quantity ofgronnd'meat from the grinder, a knife reiciprocable downwardlyadjacentth'e grinder outlet to sever a quantity of ground meat from thestream-being extruded from the grinder and said knife being reciprocableupwardly in a plane outwardly of said grinder outlet preparatory to thenext downward cutting reciprocation of said knife, and means forcontrolling and effecting the said reciprocation of the cutoff knife.

'4, In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet, of a supporting table, a conveyor belt on saidtable beneaththe grinder outlet, patty forming means on said table inoperative relation to said conveyor belt, means forarranging a paperrelative to the conveyor belt to receive a quantity of-ground meat fromthe grinder, a knife reciprocable downwardly adjacent the grinder outletto-sever a quantityof ground meat from the stream being extruded-fromthe grinder and said knife being reciprocable upwardly in a planeoutwardly of said grinder'outlet preparatory to the next downwardcutting reciprocation of said knife, an arm pivotly mounted intermediateits ends having the knife secured to one end, and a cam cooperating withthe other end of the arm to cause an oscillationof the arm about itspivot and thereby effect and control the cutoff and returnreciprocations of the knife.

5. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having anoutlet, of a supporting table, a conveyor belt on saidtable beneath the grinder'outlet, patty forming means on :said table inoperative relation tofsaid conveyor belt, :means :for arrangingv a paperrelative to the conveyor belt to receive a quantity of ground meat fromthe grinder, 1a knife-treci-procable downwardly adjacent the grinderoutlet to severe quantity ofiground'meat from the stream being extrudedfrom the grinder and'said knife being reciprocable upwardly in a planeout. wardly of said grinder outlet-preparatory to the next downwardcutting reciprocation or said knife, an arm pivotly mounted intermediateits ends having'the knife secured toits one end," a cam havingperipheralcontact with theother end of the arm and including a step-01fportion to permit the cutofi reciprocation, a cam shoulder at thebase ofthestep-oli .for shifting the knife plane of return reciprocation andefiec'tingthe said knife return reciprocation, andxa groove in .said camperiphery for returning the lmlfefto its cutoff reciprocation plane, andyielding means for .yieldingly holding the end of the farm in peripheralcontact'with the cam. i

6. In a device of the :class described the combination with ameatxgrinder having an outlet, of a supporting table, a conveyor belt on:said table beneath the grinder outlet; *patty forming means on saidtable in operative relation tosaid conveyor belt, means for arranging apaper relative to the conveyor belt to receive anuantity of ground meatfrom the grinder, a knife'reciprocable downwardlyadja'cent'thetgrinder'outlet to sever a quantity of ground m'eatfrom thestream being extruded from-the grinderand said knife being reciprocableupwardly in 'a' plane outwardly of said grinder outlet preparatory tothe next downward cutting reciprocation of said knife, an arm pivotlymountedintermediate its ends havin'g'the knife secnred'toit's one end,and a cam member cooperating with the other end or the arm andincludinga'cam portion to permit the cutoff reciprocation, a cam portion for"shifting the knife from the plane of cutoff reciprocation to the planeorreturnreci rocate-buys cam portion for effecting'the'knife returnreciprocation, and a cam portion for returningtheknifeto its cutoffreciprocation plane. v

7. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having .an outlet through which a stream of ground meat isbeingextruded, of cut-off means'for periodically severing a quantity ofground meat, sufficient to make a ground meat patty,- from said stream,.means below the grinder outlet and cut-oil means to receive the severedquantity of ground meatand 7 transport it from the vicinity ofthegrinderoutlet, a power source operating themeat grinder, a separatepower source for the severing and transporting means, and adjustablemeans in one of said power sources for "correlating said power sourceswhereby: thenrate. of: severance'and trans-- portation may be variedwith respect to the rate of extrusion from the grinder.

8. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet through which a stream of ground meat is beingextruded, of cut-01f means for periodically severing a quantitv ofground meat, sufficient to make a ground meat natty, from the saidstream, means below the grinder outlet and cut-off means to receive thesevered ouantitv and transport it from the vicinity of the g inderoutlet, a power source operating the grinder, a se arate power sourceoperating the severing and transporting means including a trans is iontr in, a d adjustable means in said trans ission t ain for changingtolerate of operation thereof and there- Ibychanging the rate ofseverance and transportation with respect to the rate of extrusion from'the grinder.

9. In a device of t e class descri ed the combination with a meatgrinder having anout et throu h which a s ream of round meat is beingextruded, of cut-off means for peri dically severing a ouantity ofground meat, suffi i nt to make a ground meat patty. from the stream,means below the grinder outlet and cut-oiT me ns to receive the severedouantitv of ground meat and transport same from the vicinity of therinder outlet, power operated means for arrang ng a piece of paperrelative to the receiving and transporting means on which the seve edouantitv of ground meat is de osited by the cut-off means, a powersource operating the meat grinder, a separate single power source oerating the na er arran ing means. the severing means and the receivingand transporting means including a transmission train, and means in saidtransmission train for changing the rate of operation thereof andthereby chan ing the rate of operation of the paper arran ing means, therate of severance of the ground meat and the rate of transportation allwith respect to the rate of extrusion from the grinder.

10. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet from which a stream of ground meat is extruded,of a supporting table above which the meat grinder outlet is located, aconv yor belt constantly moving on said table beneath the grinderoutlet, cut-off means periodicallv cutting ofi" a quantity of groundmeat, each sufiicient to form a patty, from the extruded ground meatstream, paper support means below the cut-off means supporting paperrelative to the convevor belt receiving the ouantity of ground meat assevered from the stream for deposition, paper and meat as a unit, ontothe conveyor belt, and a patty forming mechanism on sa d table inoperative relation to the conveyor belt to which the ground meat istransported by the conveyor belt.

11. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet from which a stream of ground meat is extruded,of a supporting table above which the meat grinder outlet is located, aconveyor belt constantly moving on said table beneath the grinderoutlet, cut-ofi means periodically cutting off a quantity of groundmeat, sufficient to make a ground meat patty, from the stream ofextruded ground meat, means holding a stack of individual papersdisposed to one side of the conveyor belt,

paper support means below the cut-off means receiving and supporting apaper relative to the conveyor belt to receive the quantity of groundmeat as severed from the stream for deposition,

14 paper and meat as a unit, onto the conveyor belt, and a patty formingmechanism on the table in operative relation to the conveyor belt towhich the portion of ground meat is moved by the conveyor belt.

12. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an'outlet from which a stream of ground meat is extruded,of a supporting table above which the meat grinder outlet is located, aconveyor belt constantly moving on said table beneath the grinderoutlet, cut-off means periodically cutting ofi a quantity of groundmeat, suflicient to make a ground meat patty, from the stream ofextruded ground meat, means holding a stack of individual papersdisposed to one side of the conveyor belt, paper support means below thecut-ofi m eans receiving and supporting'a paper relative to the conveyorbelt to receive the quantity of ground meat as severed from the streamfor deposition, paper and meat as a unit, onto the conveyor belt, meansarranging the papers individually from the stack onto the paper supportmeans, and a patty forming mechanism on the table in operative relationto the conveyor belt to which the portion of ground meat is moved by theconveyor belt.

13. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet from which a stream of ground meat is extruded,of a supporting table above which the meat grinder outlet is located, aconveyor belt constantly moving on said table beneath the grinderoutlet. cut-01f means periodically cutting off a quantity of groundmeat, sufficient to make a ground meat patty, from the stream ofextruded ground meat. means holding a stack of individual pa ersdisposed to one side of the conveyor belt, each aper of a size tounderlie and overlie the quantity of meat and meat patty to besubseuuently formed, paper supporting means below the cut-off meansreceiving and supporting a paper relative to the conveyor belt toreceive the ouant ty of ground meat severed from the stream fordeposition, paper and meat as a unit, onto the conveyor belt, meansarranging the papers individually from the stack onto the paper supportmeans, a patty forming mechanism on the table in operative relation tothe conveyor belt to which the portion of ground meat is moved by theconveyor belt, and means for folding the paper onto the ground meatprior to subjection to the action of the patty forming mechanism.

14. In a device of the class described the combination with a meatgrinder having an outlet from which a stream of ground meat is extruded,of a supporting table above which the meat grinder outlet is located, aconveyor belt constantly moving on said table beneath the grinderoutlet, a knife rotatable in a circle to pass the grinder outlet toperiodically sever a quantity of ground meat, sufficient to make aground meat patty, from the stream being extruded from the grinder, andpaper support means below the knife supporting a paper relative to theconveyor belt to receive a quantity of ground meat as severed from thestream for deposition, paper and meat as a unit, onto the conveyor belt.

15. In a device of the class described the com bination with a meatgrinder having an outlet outlet to periodically sever a quantity ofground meatrfrom the stream, .means holding a stack ofindividual'paperson said table adjacent the conveyor belt, paper supportmeans for supporting said papers, individually, from said stack relativetoithe conveyor belt to receive a quantity of ground'meat after. it issevered from the stream for deposition, paper and meat as a unit, onto 1the conveyor'belt, means arranging the papers individually from thestack onto the paper suppofl means, and means for synchronizing theoperation of the paper arranging means with the rotation of the knifewhereby the paper is positioned during the knife rotation and prior tothe :cuteofi thereby.

FRANK .S. ELSAESSER.

, Beferenees Cited in the me ,of this atent UNITED STATES PATENTS NameDate Nu b V Linlgiewicz Sem -v 26, 1899 Number J 1,611,244 1,881,1711,915,135 2,070,850 2,105,211 2,151,189 2,157,949

Number- 16 Name Date Schmidt Dec. 21, 1926 Cooley Oct. 4, 1932 SchmidtJune 20, 1933 Trabold Feb. 16, 19,37 Bessonette Jan. 11, 1938 CoddingtonMar. 21, 1939 Benz May 9, 1939 Rumsey Dec; 24, 1940 Broadmeyer Feb. 10,1942 Elesh et a1. Oct. :20, 19.42 Wormeck et a1; Apr, 23, 1946 FOREIGNPATENTS Country Date Germany Feb. 11, 1910 France 1 July 20,- 1920Germany Apr. 16,1937 Germany June 16, 1937 France July 25, 1938 GermanyJune20, 1940

